Fried lagman is one of the national dishes of Uzbek cuisine. In Uzbekistan, this dish is also called "Kovurma lagman". It is prepared in the likeness of a traditional lagman. But, unlike him, fried lagman is served without gravy. In addition, minced meat is often used instead of lumpy meat.
How to make homemade lagman noodles
You will need:
- Flour - 0.5 kg;
- Salt - 1 tsp;
- Water - 250 ml.
To make noodles, you need to knead a tough dough. To do this, dissolve salt in warm water. Pour the flour onto the table or into a large deep bowl and pour the salted water into it. Mix everything together thoroughly, first with a spoon, and then with your hands. Form a dough from the resulting dough and remove it for 30 minutes, covering the bowl with napkins or a towel so that the dough is properly spaced.
When the time is up, roll the bun into a 2 mm thick layer and cut the noodles using a knife or a special cutting device. Tip: If you don't have the ability to make dough, you can use regular store-bought pasta for fried lagman. For example, spaghetti, noodles, etc. But if you want to get as close as possible to the original recipe, we'd better cook the noodles ourselves. After all, Uzbeks never take semi-finished products for their dishes, everything is done strictly by hand.
Making meat sauce
To make lagman sauce, you need the following set of products:
- Minced meat or pulp (beef or lamb) - 0.5 kg;
- Carrots - 2 pcs.;
- Onions - 4 pcs.;
- Garlic - 1 head;
- Green radish or daikon - 1 pc.;
- Potatoes - 2-3 pcs.;
- Tomato paste - 3 tbsp l.;
- Chicken eggs - 3 pcs.;
- Sunflower oil for frying - 150-180 ml;
- Zira - 1 tsp with a slide;
- Ground black pepper;
- Salt;
- Fresh herbs (cilantro and dill) - in a bunch.
First you need to fry the meat. Take a cauldron or saucepan with a thick bottom and walls, heat it well, and then pour in the sunflower oil. If you have minced meat, put it in hot oil and fry, stirring occasionally. If you have meat, then you will first need to cut it into small cubes with a side of no more than 1.5 cm.
While the meat is browning, prepare the vegetables. Peel the carrots, onions, potatoes and radishes, and peel the garlic. Then cut them into small cubes that are similar in size to each other.
When the meat is golden brown, add the onion to it, stir, and then fry for about 8 minutes. Next, send the carrots and radishes to the fry, fry for a few more minutes until the carrots are half cooked. Then add the garlic and tomato paste. Once the pasta is browned, add the potato cubes, cumin, black pepper and salt to taste. Mix everything together well. And then add water to the cauldron and bring to a boil. In this case, very little water is required. One of the features of the traditional Central Asian lagman is considered to be a thick sauce, so pour in 150-200 ml of water, but not more, and then cover with a crumb, reduce the temperature to a low value and simmer until the potatoes and meat are cooked.
Final stage
While the sauce is coming up, cook the noodles. To do this, pour it into boiling salted water and cook until almost cooked. If you have pasta from the store, then focus on the time indicated on the package.
Drain the water from the finished noodles, and transfer it to the cauldron to the sauce, add the chicken eggs and cover tightly. Cook the dish for 10-15 minutes, stirring, so that the noodles have time to absorb all the taste and rich aroma of roasted meat.
Serve the fried lagman in deep bowls, sprinkled with fresh, finely chopped herbs such as dill and cilantro.
